Pronunciation of
the sh and ch sounds

How do you pronounce ch in English?

When pronouncing ch, the tongue briefly touches the roof of the mouth. The letters ch have the phonetic sound /ʧ/. Click on the audio link below to hear and repeat the sound:

► The letters ch - phonetic sound of /ʃ/

How do you pronounce sh in English?

When you pronounce sh, your tongue comes close to, but doesn't touch, the roof of your mouth. To do this, imagine you're pronouncing ch, but without touching the roof of your mouth with your tongue. Leave a space for the air to escape while you produce the sound. The letters sh have the phonetic sound /ʃ/. Click on the audio link below to listen to and repeat the sound:

► The letters sh - phonetic sound of /ʧ/

The first word in each row in the table below has the sh sound (phonetic sound of /ʧ/). The second has the ch sound (phonetic sound of /ʃ/). Click on the word to hear and repeat the pronunciation.

The pronunciation of the sounds sh and ch
The sh sound	The ch sound
► sheep	► cheap
► shop	► chop
► ship	► chip
► cash	► catch
► wash	► watch
► she's	► cheese
► sheet	► cheat
► share	► chair
► shoe	► chew
► shore	► chore
► shows	► chose
► wish	► which